SEASIDE >> The Panetta Institute for Public Policy will honor three leaders at the 2024 Jefferson Lincoln Awards next month.

This year the awards will be presented to CIA Director William Burns, Naval Postgraduate School President Ann Rondeau and Chairman of the U.S. House Select Committee on Intelligence Mike Turner at a black-tie gala dinner to be held at Spanish Bay in Pebble Beach, Nov. 16.

“A secure nation is essential to the health of our democracy,” Institute Chairman and Co-Founder Leon E. Panetta said in a press release.

“Our military and intelligence agencies are central to protecting America’s national security.”

Panetta, the former Secretary of Defense added the Institute is proud to honor the three leaders, saying “They are examples of the kind of bipartisan leadership that is critical to the future of the United States.”

Burns has served six presidents and administrations of both parties during nearly four decades of public service in diplomacy and intelligence. He was name CIA director in March 2021. He is the first career diplomat to serve as director. He has served as Deputy Secretary of State and Career Ambassador in the Foreign Service, equivalent to a four-star general.

He also was ambassador to Russia from 2005 to 2008. Burns has been given numerous awards for service in the Department of State, including three Presidential Distinguished Service Awards and two Distinguished Honor Awards.

Rondeau was appointed as the 13th President of the Naval School in 2019. She has experience in strategy development and policy advisory roles at the highest levels of the Department of Defense. She retired from the Navy as a three-star admiral in 2012, only the second woman to have achieved that rank.

Rep. Turner joined the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence in 2015 and was appointed chairman in 2023. He has said he believes that sharing intelligence with congressional leaders, working in a bipartisan manner and establishing industry partnerships are crucial for the success of the committee. Turner was elected to Congress in 2002 where he serves as a subcommittee chairman on the House Armed Services Committee.

The Jefferson-Lincoln gala also serves as a fundraiser to help support The Panetta Institute for Public Policy and its mission to attract thoughtful men and women to lives of public service and equipping them with the practical skills of self-government. The gala will feature a four-course meal. Sponsor tables for the gala event are available for $15,000 with seating for 10 guests. Individual seats are $750. For more information, call the Institute at (831) 582-4200 or visit panettainstitute.org.